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Show ifor'AUr0"3-WGir84- 1 , W , K& V flM? r h', WiVS2a(t A jr ' " ; , $SS3J 'W r, V 45$ y? ' ' ' T y ,. j- - u rh I SSExp. UT 84112 , -- a.!.,.,..,, """ -- a r C001 hriM Juan HOMETOWN NEWSPAPER FOR SAN JUAN COUNTY, UTAH -- IvAe VoL84 April 12, 2000 cw 50 cents No 26 f . r r-?- -:. Monticello has spent $44,646 on electric system project The City of Monticello has spent $44,646 over the past three years on administrative and professional fees related to the project to purchase the municipal electrical system from Empire Electric. The purchase, approved with a 1 vote by the Monticello City Council on March 22, is scheduled to take place on May 15. The information was obtained after a Freedom of Information on-goi- ng 4-- These Monticello youth were lined up on the sidewalk awaiting the grand opening of the Monticello Youth Program on April 4. The Body Salon is open from 3:45 to 6:45 p.m. each day for junior high and high school age students. The program is designed to give kids a place to go and keep them off of the streets. Sure enough, as soon as the ribbon was cut, these kids were off of the streets and in the building having fun. Act request by the San Juan Record. Official records show that the direct costs to date related to the purchase of the system total $44,646.29. They include staff photo $8,900 to Black and Veatch Appraisal, $17,993 to Intermoun- tain Consumer Professional Health District faces additional lawsuits Engineers, Inc., $7,817.25 to consultant Kay Johnson, and $9,936.04 to attorney Chris Engstrom. by Bill Boyle moved to the area in late 1998 San Juan Health Services faces a number of new legal hurdles with the filing of two Civil Rights lawsuits in the U.S. and began a practice as an employee of the district. Federal Court system. Attorney Peter Stirba, of Salt Lake City, has hied two separate lawsuits alleging that the health care district, its board of trustees and San Juan County has engaged in a systematic conspiracy. Dr. Robert Mena, of Monticello, alleges that the district has conspired to take away his medical practice. Mena Utah State Parks meets in Blanding The Board of Utah State Parks and Recreation meets Monday, April 17 and Tuesday, April 18 in Blanding to review and discuss several issues currently facing the division. The public is welcome attend a public meeting at 7 p.m. Monday, April 17 at Edge of the Cedars State Park Museum at 660 W. 400 N. in Blanding. The agenda includes a variety of issues statewide, including vehicle iiding in San Juan County and the San off-highw- ay Rafael Swell. While in southeastern Utah, board members will tour several Sites including Arch Canyon, Goosenecks State Park, and Edge of the Cedars State Park Museum. ing several months later, Mena was informed that the district was not planning to renew his one year contract. Mena began a private practice at that time. In November, 1999, Menas admitting privileges at San Juan Hospital expired. Since late 1999, he has not been able to admit patients into the San Juan Hospital. The lawsuit contends that Mena has been denied his right to practice medicine and that the district has simply refused to process his application for hospital privileges. The Health Care District states that Mena withdrew his application for privileges in a formal letter in Mary Nielson, of Monticello, has also filed a Civil Rights lawsuit. Nielson contends that a similar conspiracy was involved during her tenure at the district 8 to from Nielson was hired by the Health Care Board to serve as Chief Financial Officer of the district. In September, 1998, mid-i99- er. mid-199- 9. she notified the San Juan County Commission that the districts management contract with Southwest Health Systems of Cortez had put the district on the verge of bankruptcy. The management contract with Southwest was canceled and the district created a management team that included Nielson, San Juan County Ad-(plea- I would be shocked if the total costs reach $75,000, said Schafer. Indirect costs related to the $30,000. At a Health Care board meet- mid-Decemb- Monticello City Manager Trent Schafer said that he expects that outstanding bills for the project may total another se turn to page 5) project are not significant, say City officials. I have been the only City employee to spend a large amount of time on this, said Schafer, if you can discount the hundreds of hours that the Mayor and City Council have donated to the effort. The payments to Black and Veatch are for the appraisal of the system. The $17,800 cost was split between the City and Empire Electric. Payments to Intermountain Consumer Professional Engineers, Inc. are for consultant Anton Tone. Nine payments year. Camp Jackson had 41 of snow with 13.4 of water. This is 136 percent of normal. In 1999, there was one inch of water at the site, which was 10 per- cent of normal. The year to date precipitation is 81 percent of normal. Buckboard Flat had 44 of snow with 13.4 of water. This is 94 percent of normal. There was 6.6 of water for the month. In 1999, there was 3.1 of water at the site, which was 27 percent of normal. La Sal Lower had 27 of snow with 9.4 of water. This is 97 percent of normal. There was thisvvveeks County Commission brief - See page 2 news Bluff See pages - See pages 6,7 - 1997. Tone continues to provide services to the City, including han- Four weddings See pages 8,9 dling the separation from Empire Electric, negotiating for the purchase of power, and working on a contract to construct a new substation. Payments to Kay Johnson, who is an official with the Utah Association of Muncipal Power Systems, began in August, 1997. UAMPS acts as a purchasing agent for approximately 40 municipalities in Utah. The City has received a bid from UAMPS to purchase power on a two-yecontract. The City also is negotiating 2, 3 Letters to Editor have been made since in July, Cave Guy See page 12 - Life in Nutshell - I See page 13 TOfeODBEB Monticello I Blanding ar with other organizations for power purchase contracts. Schafer states that formal Requests for Proposals will be sent to UAMPS, Utah Power, Empire Electric, and Deseret Generation and Transmission. Apparently, preliminary negotiations with Deseret Genera- lillMb tion and Transmission have resulted in a possible contract that would be at a lower price and for a longer period of time than through UAMPS. City officials state that if the City purchases power through (please turn to page 5) Snow pack looks better than 1 999 The Natural Resource Conservation Service completed a snow survey on March 31. The March 31 measure is considered the most important ofthe year. This year looks much better than last SINCE 1915 no snow in 1999. La Sal Upper had 39 of snow with 14 of water. This is 101 In 1999, there was 1.6 of snow with .33 inches of water or 2 percent of normal. The total year precipitation is 93 percent of normal. Precipitation cans throughout the county, placed by the San Juan Soil Conservation District, measured 2.3 at the Keith Ivins farm in Blanding, 1.3 at the David Fullmer farm at Piute Knoll, 2.3 at the Halls Farm on Three Step, 1.6 at the John Johnson farm near Monticello, 2.8 at the James Barry farm in Eastland, and 1.3 at the Steve Deeter ranchette at La Sal. The San Juan SCD will add three precipitation cans by the middle of May. The sites will be announced at that time. percent of normal. boy Delbert Rosetta James & Delbert Blackhorse April 3 I (SBggqMl a The energy policy of the United States is not to do anything in the United States. Its just stupidity. We've got oil in this county if theyd just allow us to do something with it. - San Juan County Commissioner Ty Lewis regarding the decline in the assessed valuation of San Juan County. INDEX NEWS ROUNDUP. LETTERS SOCIETY. SPORTS COMMUNITY NEWS LEGALS REAL ESTATE. CLASSIFIEDS 2 6-- 7' 8 10 12 16 17 18 |